The Object of Our Desire
What is the fine line that separates enthrallment from coveting? And what if you cross that fine line? This is what Ruskin Bond’s novella and Vishal Bhardwaj film based on the same called The Blue Umbrella explores. A rainbow, a shooting star, a starlit sky enthralls us and we never get tired of them. But when a beautiful blue umbrella as blue as the autumn sky find its way into a sleepy village all hell breaks lose.
The unscrupulous village shopkeeper first coaxes the little girl Binni with a tantalizing list of goodies for year but when she refuses he keeps on persisting. Every one is captivated by this blue umbrella and secretly covets it. Then the umbrella goes missing and Binni just knows that it is the shopkeeper whose avariciousness knows no bound has stolen it. Upon being found out the shopkeeper is declared an out cast. He is destroyed to nearing madness. Binni the silent observer of all this eventually forgives him and gives him the umbrella which had nearly destroyed him. Prosperity returns to the shopkeeper and the entire village comes back together.
The allegorical film takes us to the darkness and the goodness of life and resonates with the bleak and cheerful beauty of life. A small film with no star cast apart from the stalwart Pankaj Kapur who yet again gives a scintilating performance and debutant Shreya Sharma as Binni is definitely a must see to support the cause of more meaningful cinema in the times of corporate films scripts and multi billion high budget films. I urge you readers to go to the nearest Cineplex to see this beautiful film; it will be your money’s worth.
The unscrupulous village shopkeeper first coaxes the little girl Binni with a tantalizing list of goodies for year but when she refuses he keeps on persisting. Every one is captivated by this blue umbrella and secretly covets it. Then the umbrella goes missing and Binni just knows that it is the shopkeeper whose avariciousness knows no bound has stolen it. Upon being found out the shopkeeper is declared an out cast. He is destroyed to nearing madness. Binni the silent observer of all this eventually forgives him and gives him the umbrella which had nearly destroyed him. Prosperity returns to the shopkeeper and the entire village comes back together.
The allegorical film takes us to the darkness and the goodness of life and resonates with the bleak and cheerful beauty of life. A small film with no star cast apart from the stalwart Pankaj Kapur who yet again gives a scintilating performance and debutant Shreya Sharma as Binni is definitely a must see to support the cause of more meaningful cinema in the times of corporate films scripts and multi billion high budget films. I urge you readers to go to the nearest Cineplex to see this beautiful film; it will be your money’s worth.
Comments
The second story is "The Man who corrupted Hadleyburg" by Mark Twain. Its about a small town that prided itself on being very honest. Until one night a stranger drops by leaving a sack of goods with a family and telling them to look after it. The sack soons draws the curiosity of the whole town and finally it goes missing and accusations are thrown around and matters end up in court. However, the owner of the sack turns up and reveals that he left the sack only to prove that the town was needlessly proud of their honesty.
I will try to see the movie, but its not showing here..so...lets see.